In this series of data design posts, we draw inspiration from charts in the news and other spaces featuring data visualizations. Then we recreate the charts using easy freemium tools. In this post I am going to walk you through the process of creating your own hex tile grid using Canva. The Inspiration So over […]
How to Evaluate a Website.
Is your website really accomplishing anything? Or does it just look the part? In this guide I am going to walk you through a few methods you can use to evaluate a website. The specific method(s) you choose will depend a lot on your evaluation goals. And ultimately, you will probably want to mix these […]
How to develop a data visualization color palette.
In this post I am going to walk you through the process of creating your own data visualization color palette. Why you should have a color palette before you chart Picking your first color Picking Color Number 2 Picking Colors 3, 4, 5, and 6 Developing a color palette guide Accessibility Checks Why you should […]
Happy Thanksgiving
What can I say about 2020. It’s been strange, and this Thanksgiving will continue that strangeness. But there is some promise on the horizon, optimistic results from vaccine trials that are progressing with lightning speed, so let’s hold on to that together. And today, I am thankful for you. I continue to draw cartoons because […]
Evaluation Cartoons – Inspiration from New Evaluators
So yesterday I had the opportunity to join the AEA graduate student and new evaluators topical interest group for a chat about evaluation cartoons. It was a fun conversation (I always like talking cartoons). We ended the discussion with a little bit of a cartoon together exercise. Today’s cartoon set is the result. Enjoy! Would […]
Is your site suffering from a content deficiency?
Have you ever visited a park that lacked any type of attraction? So no playground, trails, pond, shelter, picnic table, or anything else that make a visit worthwhile? Boring right? Unless it’s right across the street from your house with just enough room to toss a ball back and forth, you’re probably not going back […]
Finish the Cartoon – Engaging Stakeholders
When I lead workshops, one of my favorite types of activities involves using half-finished cartoons. Sometimes I print out the cartoons as handouts, or I put them up on a slide and ask the participants to pull out a pen and paper. Then I ask them to try their hand at finishing the cartoons. After […]
Not Politics
I didn’t want to send a regular email today. If you are feeling anything like I am feeling, you probably have enough on your mind. So I decided to just do something completely and totally random. I created some stream of conscience cartoons and a little cartoon story. Not my usual, but not politics either. […]
Halloween Cartoons 2020 Edition
Happy weirdo 2020 Halloween everyone! Mask Wearing Monster Which one is really the monster? Also, it’s hard to remember to cover the nose when drawing cartoon characters with masks. A boo is an output Not sure how many output/outcome cartoons a single illustrator needs to draw. But here is another seasonal version. Oh no, we […]
Evaluator Inspired Cartoons
The majority of what I would consider to be my best cartoons have always been the products of simple collaboration. Here is how it works. I talk to another evaluator and ask them if there is anything they are struggling with or if there are any complicated things they are having a hard time describing […]
The 2020 Election: A Little Context
I am a little stressed out. In the US, voting in the general election has begun. My wife and I dropped our ballots off at the post office yesterday. It’s not that I don’t think we have good shot of voting Trump out office, I think we do. But after the events of 4 years […]
Evaluation is a dangerous profession.
Evaluation is a dangerous profession. Not dangerous as in it requires hard hats or tethers. But dangerous in that it questions realities most would rather ignore. Traditions that are so deeply entrenched within organizational structures that merely hinting at their instability can lead to alienation and professional isolation. Our frameworks and methods exist not only […]